• Choose a category
• All
• Classic-Fiction

By Root 600 0

’s like saying it’s possible to climb Mount Everest. If you’re just getting started, don’t invest a huge amount of time in building something that isn’t core to your application, because it just drags you away from the important stuff. Take a look at efforts such as The Fountain Project (http://www.fountainproject.com/), which provides an A/B system for testing Facebook invitations.

The Great Apps Program

Problem

My app is a really outstanding example of building on Facebook Platform and I’d like to see it celebrated by Facebook.

Solution

Apply to the Facebook Great Apps Program! You can learn more at http://developers.facebook.com/greatapps.php.

Discussion

Facebook, recognizing the need to celebrate truly great applications, launched the Great Apps Program at the f8 conference in July 2008. If your app does an exceptional job of meeting Facebook’s 10 Guiding Principles (http://developers.facebook.com/get_started.php?tab=principles), has a minimum user base, and has a consistent record of complying with Platform policies, you stand a chance of being accepted, although it’s worth noting that they expect to add only 10–15 apps over the first year.

As a Great App, you’ll enjoy:

Increased visibility

Your app will get promoted at the same level as Facebook’s own apps, including the weight and visibility given to your News Feed items.

Early access to features

Great Apps will be given sneak peaks at new stuff and will be able to help test these features before the general masses.

Support from Facebook

The Facebook team has committed to working closely with the developers of Great Apps, providing them with feedback and better usage data to help improve their user experience.

The program launched with two Great Apps in place: iLike and Causes. It’s too early to really provide any guidance about how to shape your app to get accepted, other than to say that it’s worth reviewing what these apps have done and how they excel at the Guiding Principles.

Application Verification Program

Problem

The world of apps is getting too crowded, and I feel like users just don’t trust apps the way they used to. How can I get them to know that my app is legit?

Solution

If you’re faced with being MC Hammer (i.e., being 2 legit, 2 legit 2 quit), consider the Application Verification Program launched at the 2008 f8 conference. More information is at http://developers.facebook.com/verification.php.

Discussion

Interested developers can submit their apps, along with a processing fee, and Facebook will verify and certify that the app:

Uses major integration points in the manner they were intended

Triggers communication between users and friends appropriately

Has relevant and appropriate content in communications

Verified applications will receive a badge on their About Page, heightened presence in the Application Directory, and more visibility in some Facebook communication channels compared to their unverified peers. Generally speaking, if your app complies with Facebook’s Platform Policy (http://wiki.developers.facebook.com/index.php/Platform_Policy) and meets (or exceeds!) the Guiding Principles (http://developers.facebook.com/principles.php), you should have no trouble.

Index

A NOTE ON THE DIGITAL INDEX

A link in an index entry is displayed as the section title in which that entry appears. Because some sections have multiple index markers, it is not unusual for an entry to have several links to the same section. Clicking on any link will take you directly to the place in the text in which the marker appears.

Symbols

" (double quotes), Discussion

PHP, Discussion

& (ampersand), Return by reference

return by reference, Return by reference

' (single quotes), Discussion

PHP, Discussion

.NET library, Discussion

100-class errors, Solution

200-class errors, Solution

37signals, Getting Real, Ideation and Strategy, Solution

4-1-1 information, Problem

600-class errors, Problem

<> angle brackets, Problem

FBJS code, Problem

{} (curly braces), Solution

fb:intl tag,